Business Commons^™

Coworkers And Leaders: The Relationship Between Trustworthiness, Trust, And Employee Engagement, Lianne Young

Dissertations

A highly engaged workforce provides numerous organizational and individual benefits (Shuck et al., 2016), the culmination of which leads to a competitive advantage difficult to emulate (Burke et al., 2013). It remains challenging to understand how engagement develops, with little research available explaining the process (Shuck, 2020). High employee engagement levels provide a competitive advantage, but stagnant engagement levels remain a significant obstacle (Shuck, 2020).

Shuck (2020) recommends further research focusing on methods to increase engagement. Trustworthiness and trust are antecedents and drivers of engagement (Chughtai & Buckley, 2008; Federman, 2010; SHRM, 2017). A lack of trust has negative impacts …

With A Little Help At Home: The Impact Of Romantic Partner Support On Daily Burnout And Workplace Incivility, Matthew Aplin-Houtz

Dissertations

With rude and discourteous encounters in the workplace becoming more common, Workplace incivility (WI) is at an all-time high. As such, workers experience levels of burnout from these negative social interactions. The literature concedes that the results of these interactions lead to mounting burnout, causing negative physical and emotional outcomes at the individual and organizational levels. Considering that the literature also supports that employees have the potential to recover from burnout symptoms through rest, obtaining the perception of control of their circumstances, and cognitive reframing, the time and activities a worker spends at home carry the potential for minimizing burnout …

Safeguarding From Scrutiny: Toward A Critical Consciousness Of Organizational Culture In Humanitarian Ngos, Andrew Henck

Dissertations

Humanitarian nongovernmental organizations (HNGOs) face a moment of reckoning brought on by decades of operational complexity and conceptual tensions between self-espoused values and external pressures as social change movements like #MeToo and Black Lives Matter demand organizational accountability. Humanitarian aid is being questioned systematically as most HNGOs continue reconciling with their colonialist origin stories from the Global North. Alongside a shrinking British foreign aid budget, and mounting pressures for proving value for money, HNGOs face a record number of natural disasters, energy crises, armed conflicts, and other major emergencies to respond to across the globe.

As the British aid sector …

Utilizing New Technologies To Measure Therapy Effectiveness For Mental And Physical Health, Jonathan Ossie

Dissertations

Mental health is quickly becoming a major policy concern, with recent data reporting increasing and disproportionately worse mental health outcomes, including anxiety, depression, increased substance abuse, and elevated suicidal ideation. One specific population that is especially high risk for these issues is the military community because military conflict, deployment stressors, and combat exposure contribute to the risk of mental health problems.

Although several pharmacological approaches have been employed to combat this epidemic, their efficacy is mixed at best, which has led to novel nonpharmacological approaches. One such approach is Operation Surf, a nonprofit that provides nature-based programs advocating the restorative …

Affective Commitment, Mentoring, And Anticipated Turnover Among Millennials, Keiasha Hypolite

Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Millennials comprise the largest group of individuals in the workforce, yet organizations struggle to keep millennials engaged in the workplace. Millennials move from job to job, with an average stay at one employer between 12 and 18 months (Hechl, 2017). Researchers have reported that millennials cause the majority of turnover in the workplace. Globally, human resources practitioners experience difficulties retaining millennials (Sahraee et al., 2021). Previous studies have researched millennials, affective commitment, mentoring, and turnover. However, no known research has used all four factors to solve a global problem. In their discussion of the highly competitive labor market, Ramírez …

A Leadership Laboratory: Exploring The Use Of Case-In-Point Pedagogy To Develop Complex Thinking In Leaders, Erica Corley Jackson

Dissertations

Leadership scholars have identified a growing gap between the complexity of 21^st century organizations and the capabilities of individuals in positions of leadership to adequately address these challenges. This gap has contributed to a so-called complexity crisis—a situation in which the demands placed on those in leadership positions increases “at a rate that significantly outstrips the rate at which” leaders are cognitively developing (Rich-Tolsma & Oliver, 2016, p. 1). One way to respond to this growing need for complex adult thinking is through metacognitive development initiatives. However, finding educational methods to promote metacognitive development has proven to be …

Moving Forward By Looking Back: How Family Firms Create Competitive Advantage By Embracing Their History, Adam Goldman

Dissertations

Family businesses are the engine that drives the United States economy. While extensive implications have been made in the literature about the advantages or disadvantages of family-owned businesses compared to non-family-owned businesses, the focus of this study was to show how small to medium-sized family-owned firms (FF SMEs) based in the United States can use their unique history to create a competitive advantage. Drawing on imprint theory and the resource-based view (RBV), this history-informed study helped identify the impact that founder imprints, business traditions, and storytelling have on the business performance of FF SMEs. Using quantitative methods, the findings of …

A Delphi Study Of Possible, Probable, And Desirable Futures At 4-Year U.S. Higher Education Institutions By 2035, Mary Cutia-Pluff

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify and describe educational changes at 4-year higher education institutions that are possible and probable by 2035 as perceived by a panel of experts. Additionally, the purpose was to determine the level of desirability of educational changes identified as probable by a panel of experts. Finally, the purpose was to describe actions necessary to promote the desirable educational changes by 2035 as perceived by the panel of experts.

Methodology: The Delphi method was used to survey 17 higher education experts from diverse disciplines. Four survey rounds gathered qualitative and quantitative data regarding …

We Don’T Have To Do All Of It Alone: A Phenomenological Study On How Mid-Level Leaders In Community Colleges Flourish Through Collaboration And Advocacy, Mackenzie Taylor Klinker Hutchins

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to identify and describe the formal and informal leadership development experiences of mid-level leaders promoted within Washington State Community Colleges.

Methodology: This phenomenological study identified and described the formal and informal leadership development experiences of 17 mid-level leaders promoted within Washington State Community Colleges. Respondents were purposively chosen based on specific criteria and recommendations of two expert sponsors. The researcher collected data through semi-structured interviews, where the participants provided descriptive data that would aid in answering the study’s research questions.

Findings: Analysis of the qualitative data from 17 mid-level leaders promoted within …

The Dark Side Of Leadership: Mid-Level Managers And Their Experience With Hubristic Behaviors Of Executives, Leili Sadaghiani

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to identify the emotional reactions of mid-level managers to executives’ hubris behaviors in a corporate setting.

Methodology: This leadership study uses qualitative phenomenological methodology was executed to explore the lived experiences of mid-level managers with past executives who practiced hubristic behavior.

Findings: The findings of this research on the lived experiences of mid-level managers with hubristic behaviors of executives suggest that the lack of support lessens the mid-level manager’s confidence; with little support; the mid-level manager was either afraid to fight the executive or gave up trying; the mid-level manager faced stress even …

See Me From Behind The Screen: Workplace Ostracism In A Remote Environment, Quiméka Nicole Saunders

Dissertations

Workplace Ostracism is a common social phenomenon that impacts individuals of diverse backgrounds, across various industries, and cultural experiences. Literature to date highlights direct and indirect relationships of workplace ostracism, concerning the psychological and behavioral outcomes an individual may experience and the impact to organizational goals. Of existing literature, studies have focused on acts of ostracism conducted in face-to-face (F2F) environments or in F2F workplace situations. With the COVID-19 Pandemic, many companies were forced into teleworking situations, where work continues to be conducted outside of the central work office or facility (remote). With the shift in working environments, the prevalence …

The Mediating Influence Of Organizational Trust On The Relationship Between Transformational Leadership And Job Satisfaction In The Virtual Workplace, Angela Daniels

Dissertations

Research has shown how leadership influences job satisfaction and organizational trust in the virtual workplace. With an increasing number of organizations shifting to these work environments, it is essential to study the effect of leadership on virtual workers. Prior studies suggest that leadership behaviors significantly impact job satisfaction (Hacker et al., 2019), and leadership plays a crucial role in inspiring employees to achieve the goals and objectives of the organization in a virtual workplace (Miller, 2020). Specifically, transformational leadership behaviors that shape the mindset and actions of employees are significant (Abelha et al., 2018). This study proposed a mediation model …

A Phenomenological Study On The Informal Learning Experiences Of Female Mid-Level Administrators, Kathryn L. Curameng

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study is to identify and describe the informal leadership development experiences of female mid-level administrators in private nonprofit higher education.

Methodology: This phenomenological study identifies and describes the informal leadership development experiences of female mid-level administrators in private nonprofit higher education institutions in California. Respondents were selected based on specific criteria and recommendations of a sponsor. The researcher collected data through semi-structured interviews and observations of participants.

Findings: Examination of the qualitative data from interviews with 16 female mid-level administrators working in private nonprofit higher education yielded nine major findings. These included 2 unexpected …